Donna May Amaral
April 16, 1933 ~ June 22, 2018 (age 85) 85 Years Old
Tribute
A graveside service is planned for longtime Tracy resident Donna May Amaral on July 2, 2018, at 10:00 a.m. at Tracy Public Cemetery, coordinated by Fry Memorial Chapel in Tracy (www.frymemorialchapel.com).
Donna passed away on June 22nd after a brief illness. She was born on April 16, 1933, in Merced, California. Her family moved to Tracy in 1942 as the Southern Pacific Railroad promised a good paying job for her father. She attended Central School, West Park School, and graduated from Tracy High in 1951. She was very active in the International Order of the Rainbow Girls where she reached the station of Worthy Advisor, the highest office in an Assembly.
Following high school Donna worked as a Legal Secretary for the Law Offices of Wadsworth & Souza of Tracy. She married Tony J. Pereira and became a classic nurturing mother of four Baby Boomers. She was a stay-at-home mom during this time and would do anything for her kids to make sure they had a great childhood. She also concurrently ran the office for the family farming business.
Donna was a stabilizing influence on the family when Tony suddenly died at the tender age of 43. She took classes at Delta College, got her real estate license and became a successful businesswoman. While never a push-over, she was a good listener and always sought fairness in all her dealings.
Donna then married Manuel Amaral of Tracy in 1984. She also ran the office for his farming operations. She and Manuel loved to travel, and maintained several friendships with people they met while visiting six of the seven continents before Manuel passed away in 2011.
Always keeping active with a “glass half full” mentality, she regularly attended meetings of the “Friends of the Military” and the Tracy Chapter of “Widowed Persons Association of California.” She enjoyed putting together jigsaw puzzles and was an avid reader. She also looked forward to lunches with family, with the “Banta Lunch Bunch”, her longtime girlfriends of the Class of 1951, and many treasured friends. She also had a long-standing tradition of always celebrating her birthday for at least a month!
Donna was truly one of the most loved, honest, and sincere people around. She will be missed by everyone who knew her.
Donna was preceded in death by her father Donald Cocanour of Santa Cruz, her mother Jeannette Hildreth of Tracy, and her husbands Tony Pereira and Manuel Amaral both of Tracy. She is survived by her sister Jo Ann Abraham of Livingston, and her four children Mike (Mary Anne) Pereira of Morgan Hill, Janet (Stephen) Mitchell Edwards of Ripon, and John (Cindy) Pereira and Tom (Michelle Beshara) Pereira of Tracy. Donna was extremely proud of being a Great Grandmother. She had eight grandchildren and twelve great grandchildren.
Memorial donations can be made In Memory of Donna Amaral to Fix’d Inc., 68 East 11 Street, Tracy CA (www.fixdinc.org) or the charity of your choice.
Donna passed away on June 22nd after a brief illness. She was born on April 16, 1933, in Merced, California. Her family moved to Tracy in 1942 as the Southern Pacific Railroad promised a good paying job for her father. She attended Central School, West Park School, and graduated from Tracy High in 1951. She was very active in the International Order of the Rainbow Girls where she reached the station of Worthy Advisor, the highest office in an Assembly.
Following high school Donna worked as a Legal Secretary for the Law Offices of Wadsworth & Souza of Tracy. She married Tony J. Pereira and became a classic nurturing mother of four Baby Boomers. She was a stay-at-home mom during this time and would do anything for her kids to make sure they had a great childhood. She also concurrently ran the office for the family farming business.
Donna was a stabilizing influence on the family when Tony suddenly died at the tender age of 43. She took classes at Delta College, got her real estate license and became a successful businesswoman. While never a push-over, she was a good listener and always sought fairness in all her dealings.
Donna then married Manuel Amaral of Tracy in 1984. She also ran the office for his farming operations. She and Manuel loved to travel, and maintained several friendships with people they met while visiting six of the seven continents before Manuel passed away in 2011.
Always keeping active with a “glass half full” mentality, she regularly attended meetings of the “Friends of the Military” and the Tracy Chapter of “Widowed Persons Association of California.” She enjoyed putting together jigsaw puzzles and was an avid reader. She also looked forward to lunches with family, with the “Banta Lunch Bunch”, her longtime girlfriends of the Class of 1951, and many treasured friends. She also had a long-standing tradition of always celebrating her birthday for at least a month!
Donna was truly one of the most loved, honest, and sincere people around. She will be missed by everyone who knew her.
Donna was preceded in death by her father Donald Cocanour of Santa Cruz, her mother Jeannette Hildreth of Tracy, and her husbands Tony Pereira and Manuel Amaral both of Tracy. She is survived by her sister Jo Ann Abraham of Livingston, and her four children Mike (Mary Anne) Pereira of Morgan Hill, Janet (Stephen) Mitchell Edwards of Ripon, and John (Cindy) Pereira and Tom (Michelle Beshara) Pereira of Tracy. Donna was extremely proud of being a Great Grandmother. She had eight grandchildren and twelve great grandchildren.
Memorial donations can be made In Memory of Donna Amaral to Fix’d Inc., 68 East 11 Street, Tracy CA (www.fixdinc.org) or the charity of your choice.
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